How did the movie 'Trainspotting' get its name?

Answer 1

It is also the name of the book by Irvine Welsh on which the movie is based on. There is a chapter in the book titled Trainspotting at Leith Central Station which talks about a train station that is about to be demolished and replaced with a shopping center, Renton and Begbie run into a bum at the station who asks them if they are "trainspotting". There has not been a train at the station for years, the station is a reference to the dead end situation that the characters of the book find themselves in. The bum at the station is Begbie's father. This scene was not in the movie.

Answer 2

According to the Related Link below, "The author of the book felt the lives of trainspotters were very much like the lives of heroin addicts."